Abstract
BackgroundThe family Hoplopleuridae contains at least 183 species of blood-sucking lice, which widely parasitize both mice and rats. Fragmented mitochondrial (mt) genomes have been reported in two rat lice (Hoplopleura kitti and H. akanezumi) from this family, but some minichromosomes were unidentified in their mt genomes.MethodsWe sequenced the mt genome of the rat louse Hoplopleura sp. with an Illumina platform and compared its mt genome organization with H. kitti and H. akanezumi.ResultsFragmented mt genome of the rat louse Hoplopleura sp. contains 37 genes which are on 12 circular mt minichromosomes. Each mt minichromosome is 1.8–2.7 kb long and contains 1–5 genes and one large non-coding region. The gene content and arrangement of mt minichromosomes of Hoplopleura sp. (n = 3) and H. kitti (n = 3) are different from those in H. akanezumi (n = 3). Phylogenetic analyses based on the deduced amino acid sequences of the eight protein-coding genes showed that the Hoplopleura sp. was more closely related to H. akanezumi than to H. kitti, and then they formed a monophyletic group.ConclusionsComparison among the three rat lice revealed variation in the composition of mt minichromosomes within the genus Hoplopleura. Hoplopleura sp. is the first species from the family Hoplopleuridae for which a complete fragmented mt genome has been sequenced. The new data provide useful genetic markers for studying the population genetics, molecular systematics and phylogenetics of blood-sucking lice.
Highlights
The family Hoplopleuridae contains at least 183 species of blood-sucking lice, which widely parasitize both mice and rats
We observed in previous studies that each mt minichromosome has a distinct coding region but a wellconserved non-coding region [10,11,12,13]
The Hoplopleura sp. has close morphological and morphometric similarities with H. kitti recovered from the same host (L. edwardsi)
Summary
The family Hoplopleuridae contains at least 183 species of blood-sucking lice, which widely parasitize both mice and rats. Fragmented mitochondrial (mt) genomes have been reported in two rat lice (Hoplopleura kitti and H. akanezumi) from this family, but some minichromosomes were unidentified in their mt genomes. Blood-sucking lice are known vectors and transmit various disease agents and cause significant vector-borne diseases in humans, domestic and wild mammals [1]. The family Hoplopleuridae contains at least 183 described species of blood-sucking lice currently classified into eight genera [2]. Fragmentation of the mt genome was first found in the human body louse, Pediculus humanus corporis (suborder Anoplura) [5]. 11 other blood-sucking lice, P. humanus capitis, P. schaeffi, Pthirus pubis, Haematopinus suis, H. apri, H
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
